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Wednesday, October 29, 2014

Vada - Pav is a popular Chat food in Maharastra and North India. It is world wide famous these days. I just thought of preparing Vada Pav one evening when it was raining heavily. The weather was chill. It is 100 % natural to crave for some fried item to munch. Anyway, there were some boiled potatoes in the pressure cooker. I felt preparing some thing using them. And some Pav (bread) which I brought the previous day. With these two main ingredients the plan of Vada - Pav started. One more thing to note I do not enjoy eating these things since most of the outlets prepare Vada - Pav using onions, garlic and also Vanaspathi or Dalda, which I am not in favour of using them. So when I crave for these Chat, it's mostly done at home. Though the process is long you will surely enjoy the process once you start cooking. That is my opinion and that is me. Think of some thing, I would like to start doing it.. This applies to myself. I am not boasting my self. This attitude of mine is letting out my feeling. I will see that my enthu will not disappear until I finish preparing and serving them. Afterwords I sit down, relax and enjoy my food.

This Vada - Pav has no onion or garlic but the lovers of garlic and onion can add these favourites. I have seen people who enjoy eating onion and garlic feel the absence of it in their food. So be happy and try this Vada - Pav recipe and let me know your opinion/comments.

Here is a recipe of Vada -Pav . which is a very good snack or stomach filling chat and will be loved by all the age group and the whole family.

Method :

. Potato Palya ( Dry potato curry ) : Preparation

1. Wash and pressure cook potatoes. Remove potato skin once it is cool. Smash it nicely and keep it aside.
2. Wash and cut capsicum. (Remove the seeds before cutting ). Cut it into small pieces.

3. Wash and remove the outer skin of ginger grate it, cut green chilly and coriander leaves in to small and keep it aside.
4. Now keep a pan on the fire. Heat and put 1 tea spoon of oil and put jeera, mustard seeds and urid dal. Fry for 10 seconds.

6. Add smashed potatoes to the capsicum mixture and fry for 2 minutes nicely. Stir slowly and mix it well. Add cut coriander leaves
and remove the ready palya from the pan. Keep it in a bowl.
7. Divide in to small portion and prepare in to small size ball. Keep it aside.

. Vada Preparation : Frying step.

8. Put besan in a big bowl. Add salt, jeera and red chilly powder. Mix with sufficient water and prepare dough. (Let it be bit thick).

9. Keep a pan on the fire and add oil. Heat it on medium flame.
10. Take a potato mixture (which is a ball size) dip in besan flour
dough and put it in hot oil. Fry on both sides till it is cooked. Remove
from the pan and place it on kitchen tissue, so that extra oil will be
absorbed by the tissue.

11. Repeat the same and prepare Aloo bonda and keep it aside.

.Vada Pav Preparation:

12. Keep a dosa pan or nonstick pan on the fire.

13. Cut Pav in the middle and place it on the tava and roast. Roast on both sides.

14. Apply ghee to inner side of the bun.

15. Put some more chutney on the bonda.

16. Top up with other slice of a bun and press a little .

17. Now Vada -Pav is ready to serve. You can also serve a cup of curd along with this chat.
18. Repeat the same with remaining buns and Aloo Vada and prepare Vada - Pav.

Sweet and Spicy Chutney :

Method
:
Wash both leaves, green chilly and grind it with green chilly ,
dates, jeera and salt with little water. Remove from the Mixi Jar and
put it in a small bowl. Your Sweet and Spicy Chutney is ready to serve.

Note :

You can make use of onions and garlic while preparing Aloo Dry curry. ( I did not use )

Using cooking soda in besan (gram flour ) is optional. ( I have not used).
Let the Aloo curry be bit thick. Do not add any water while preparing curry.
Do not over cook potatoes. If they turn very soft you will not be able to make potato balls and while frying it absorbs more oil.
You can use jaggery instead of fresh dates or use both of them .(dates and jaggery) to make the Sweet and Spicy chutney more sweet.
You can also grind Spicy chutney separately .( Grind only mint, coriander leaves , jeera and green chilly together and add salt to it).
Sweet chutney can be ground separately by using fresh dates, little jaggery with very little water.
I added lemon to the Sweet and Spicy chutney. ( optional : use tamarind : add a small marble size of tamarind or Mango powder).

HelloEvery one....My name is Nalini Somayaji. Teaching is my profession. Cooking is my passion. Reading, traveling, visiting new places, having fun with kids are some of the hobbies I can say. My recipes are Healthy, quick, easy and simple. Grown up being a traditional family member I love and respect Indian culture and traditions. Love classical dance and music.

Tuesday, October 28, 2014

Basale Soppu ( in Kannada - Karnataka) is a type of spinach and it is known as " Malabar Spinach". Basale or
Basela alba leaves are used in China and it is also called as "Chinese
Spinach".

It is known in different names in different parts of India. Basale soppu (in Kannada) is known as Malabar spinach. It is known as Pui Shak in Bengali, poi ni bhaji in Gujarathi, valchi bhaji or vauchi bhaji in Konkani, vallicheera in Malayalam. Mayalu in Marathi, Poi Saaga in Oriya, Kodipu Pasali in Tamail, bacchali in Telugu and basale in Tulu.

Lets see some benefits of eating this Basale Soppu.Basale or Malabar spinach is high in Vitamin A, Vitamin,- C, iron, and calcium. It is low in Calories and high in protein. It is a soluble fiber. They contain minerals like Magnesium, Manganese, Phosphorus and Zink .

Sasive is nothing but Mustard seeds , and this Basale Curry is prepared using mustard seeds, coconut, red chilly and little bit of tamarind. Sasive is one of the side dish. We South Canara people normally prepare this curry at least once in 15 days using different vegetables. And of course not the same ingredients some time. It is one of the healthy curry which will be normally eaten with plain rice, chapatis, rotis or pooris.Basale - Dil and Palak all leaves from our garden and I am so happy that I could use the leaves to prepare this curry." Basale - Dil - Palak leaves Sasive " has no garlic and no onion. One more thing to note in Dakshina Kannada, normally onion or garlic is not used in Vegetarians home (especially Brahmins).

Here is a recipe of " Basale - Dil - Palak Sasive ", and it can be served with plain rice, dosa, idli, chapati , poori or even roti and Akki Rotti ( Rice flour Rotti).

8. Let it cook for 2 to 3 minutes. Now shift the Cooked "Basale - Dil - Palak Sasive " to a serving bowl. Serve with the main dish you prepared.

Note :

1. You can prepare this sasive with any edible leaves.
2. Use minimum water while cooking. Too much liquid curry will not taste better. It should be bit thick.
3 .You can use raw rice to bring thickness in the curry. (Soak 1 Tea spoon of raw rice 1/2 an hour before and grind this soaked rice while grinding coconut.
4. You can also use jaggery . Add jaggery when you add coconut mixture and let it boil nicely.
5. You can use onions and garlic if you wish. ( cook onions along with leaves and add garlic with mustard splutter).

HelloEvery one....My name is Nalini Somayaji. Teaching is my profession. Cooking is my passion. Reading, traveling, visiting new places, having fun with kids are some of the hobbies I can say. My recipes are Healthy, quick, easy and simple. Grown up being a traditional family member I love and respect Indian culture and traditions. Love classical dance and music.

Sunday, October 26, 2014

It is Deepavali time and we are busy with preparing sweets and some namkeens. (Spicy and salty). I as usual wanted to try something different and healthy. When I was thinking on the healthy aspect I just came across Poornima hegde's Wheat burfi and it gave me the idea that I was looking for. She has used wheat, jaggery and very little ghee.

Wheat Badam Burfi is a sweet dish. I was inspired by Poornima hegde's "Wheat burfi with Jaggery ". So wanted to give a try with little twist. So I added some Almonds (ground) and tried and the burfi turned out very tasty and everyone liked it.

Here I am posting a recipe of Wheat -Badam Burfi which is very easy to prepare and healthy too. This burfi is healthy since it contain jaggery (normally burfi is prepared using lots of sugar). I am sure you will agree with me that using jaggery is more appropriate. good for festival. You can prepare them a day or two earlier and keep this ready. Even you can prepare them for party, kids party. It is easy to serve and eat. Try this " Wheat -Badam Burfi" which will be liked by all age group and the whole family will be surely enjoy. You can put it in kids munching box too.

Things Needed :

Method:

1. Dry roast wheat flour till the raw smell disappear and keep it aside.
2. Dry grind Almonds coarsely along with cardamom and keep it aside. Apply ghee to a plate or tray and keep the tray ready.
3. Now keep a pan on the fire and put jaggery and add 3 to 4 table spoons of water and mix it well and let it boil on low flame.
4. The jaggery starts to boil (till it gets one string consistency).
5 .Mix it well and add roasted wheat flour and almonds and 2 table spoons of ghee.
6. Stir continuously till it starts to leave the sides of the pan. Add little more ghee and stir.for 2 to 3 minutes.
7.Pour the thick Wheat -Almond mixture to the ready tray or plate and leave it for cooling.
8. Cut in to your desired shape and Serve.

Note :

Roast wheat flour nicely or it may turn sticky.
You can use any kind of jaggery. I have used organic Jaggery. (If you are using the jaggery which is brought from market, must boil jaggery with 1/3 cup of water and turn it as complete liquid and sieve with siever and then use it.
Adding more or less ghee is an optional.\
Stir mixture till the mixture turn into one full dough in the middle of the pan and then spread on the tray. Cut them when they are completely cool.Time 15 to 20 minutes.15 to 20 pieces can be prepared. (According to the size).

HelloEvery one....My name is Nalini Somayaji. Teaching is my profession. Cooking is my passion. Reading, traveling, visiting new places, having fun with kids are some of the hobbies I can say. My recipes are Healthy, quick, easy and simple. Grown up being a traditional family member I love and respect Indian culture and traditions. Love classical dance and music.

Friday, October 24, 2014

Kichidi is normally, rice cooked with Moong or Toor dal and with some spices, Kichidi fills the stomach and it is a healthy dish. We can prepare Kichidi in many ways. For example rice+ moongdal and spices, broken wheat and Moong Dal or the whole moong together, Medium sized Semolina (Rava) and Moong dal together ...etc.

Kichidi can be eaten for breakfast, Lunch , Brunch ( breakfast + Lunch ) , or even dinner.
I have used Awalakki (Beaten Rice) instead of rice. Moong dal, Awalakki and some spices are used to cook Kichidi. Capsicum is fried and mixed with kichidi to make the kichidi more tasty.

I have not used any garlic or onion in this recipe and you can have this food on special days and even when you are sick too. It is one of the healthy and comfortable food.

As I said before you can prepare " CAPSICUM -AWALAKKI KICHIDI" for breakfast , lunch or dinner and it is good to pack for your and kids lunch box.

Here is a recipe which is easy and all you need is Awalakki and Moongdal + Capsicum. I am sure that each and every one will surely love it.

10. Add cut coriander leaves and ghee and mix it well.
11. Shift it to the serving bowl

12. Serve with a cup of curd and Papad.

Note:

You can use little more water and use it as kichidi or prepare the thick pongal . (Use less water and see that extra water is drained).
You can also add coconut along with the fried capsicum.
You can also use onions and garlic if you are in favour of onions and garlic.Fry them along with capsicum and add it to the pongal.
You can also add some vegetables like tomatoes, carrots and beans.(Optional).
Do not fry capsicum in the ghee. Using oil for frying is a healthy way. Adding more ghee is also optional. ( You can use more ghee to make the dish more tasty)Time : 25 minutes.Servings : 4 to 5

HelloEvery one....My name is Nalini Somayaji. Teaching is my profession. Cooking is my passion. Reading, traveling, visiting new places, having fun with kids are some of the hobbies I can say. My recipes are Healthy, quick, easy and simple. Grown up being a traditional family member I love and respect Indian culture and traditions. Love classical dance and music.

Tuesday, October 21, 2014

Dates & GroundNuts Roll : This sweet dish is appeared in Savi Ruchi - Vijaya Karnataka Deepavali Edition. Dates and Groundnuts Roll is a sweet dish. Specially made for Vijaya Karnataka Deepavali Edition. The last day of the entry just thought of sending the sweet. Thanks to Babitha Salian.

Dates and Groundnuts Roll is an easy dish and we can enjoy munching this sweet any time of the day and it can be sent to kids munching box (after lunch) and we can pack them for our picnics and travels. Since not much of ghee is used no need of thinking fat or calorie .

I Have used Dates, Groundnuts and Jaggery as the main ingredients.

Now lets know some benefits of Eating Dates and Ground Nuts.Dates are delicious and most popular fruits packed with an essential nutrients, vitamins and minerals that are required for normal growth, development and over all well being. Fresh dates are easy digest and gives energy and revitalize the body instantly. Because of this they are being served to break the fast during Ramadah month since ancient times. The fruit is rich in dietary fiber. They contain anti oxidants and work as anti infective, anti inflammatory. They also contain moderate source of Vitamin A. They are excellent source of Iron, potassium and help to regulate the heart rate and blood pressure. Dates are rich in minerals like calcium, manganese and copper. They also contain moderate levels of B- complex vitamins and Vitamin K.

Groundnuts are rich in energy and contain healthy nutrients, minerals, anti oxidants and Vitamins that are essential for optimum health. They contain sufficient levels of mono- unsaturated fatty acids and helps to lower the bad cholesterol (LDL) and increase the good cholesterol (HDL) level in the blood. They are also good source of dietary protein and essential for growth and development. They contain high concentrations of antioxidants. Groundnuts are an excellent source of Vitamin E and Vitamin B complex and Vitamin B-6.. The nuts are rich source of minerals like copper, manganese, potassium, calcium, iron, magnesium, zinc and selenium.

As I said it before " Dates & Groundnuts Rolls " can be munched any time of the day and every one and all age group will surely love this dish.

6. Add ghee fried dates and mix it well. Remove the mixture from the fire.

7. Now take a piece of date and little mixture in hand and roll the dates with ground nut mixture.

8. Arrange them on plates and let it cool. " Dates & Groundnuts Rolls " are ready to serve.

Note :

Do not add much ghee because groundnut contain oil that is sufficient for the sweets. You can roll them on dry coconut powder. You can also prepare this with Almonds, cashew nuts. You can add any kind of nuts to this sweet. Adding more jaggery or preparing this dish with sugar is left to your choice. I have used organic jaggery so that no need to filter the liquid jaggery.

HelloEvery one....My name is Nalini Somayaji. Teaching is my profession. Cooking is my passion. Reading, traveling, visiting new places, having fun with kids are some of the hobbies I can say. My recipes are Healthy, quick, easy and simple. Grown up being a traditional family member I love and respect Indian culture and traditions. Love classical dance and music.